This chandelier was made by French artist Gérard-Jean Galle in about 1818–1819. This work of art lives at the Getty Center. Find out if it's on view.

Art objects are often designed to do more than one thing. This 185-year-old chandelier is a perfect example of a work of art that was designed to serve a variety of functions. First, it served to light up a room. It was also a form of decoration made of lavish materials, making the room look more elegant. Lastly, it had a surprise use! You'll never guess. Even the experts might have missed it, but an old document describing the chandelier was discovered and revealed something unexpected. Here is what it said:

"Fish chandelier: In the middle of a blue enameled globe scattered with stars is a circle with the signs of the zodiac and six griffins carrying candles.... Below the circle on which the candles are placed are slender branches decorated with scrolls from which a glass bowl is suspended.... [The glass bowl] is furnished with ... a plug intended for the removal of the water which one places in the bowl with small goldfish whose continuous movement will give agreeable recreation to the eye."

Would you ever have imagined a combination chandelier-aquarium shaped like a hot air balloon? Why do you think the artist chose to combine these two functions together? Consider what two objects found in your home could be merged into a single (possibly outlandish) object.